USF president discusses future of St. Petersburg campus

University of South Florida president Moez Limayem Wednesday evening discussed the future of the St. Petersburg campus and its role in the educational institution’s broader strategy. 

The conversation was part of an event hosted by the St. Petersburg Area Chamber of Commerce, the St. Petersburg Downtown Partnership and the St. Petersburg Area Economic Development Corporation. 

Limayem began his tenure as USF’s president in February. Prior to joining the team, he was the president of the University of North Florida. From 2012 to 2022, Limayem served as the dean of USF’s Muma College of Business. 

“When you look at my journey, this was really coming back home,” he said at the Wednesday gathering. “Tampa Bay is the region I’ve lived in the longest since birth.” 

For Limayem, it was essential to “not make the mistake of assuming that I knew everything about USF and our campuses.” He explained that people, organizations and challenges change over time. Four years ago, USF joined the Association of American Universities (AAU).  

The educational institution is currently working on a variety of projects, Limayem added. USF is building a $348.5 million football stadium on the Tampa campus. Additionally, the organization has created the Bellini College of Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity and Computing, which was established with a $40 million gift from ConnectWise co-founder Arnie Bellini. ConnectWise is recognized as the first technology company in the Tampa Bay region to be valued at $1 billion. 

“I have strategic dreams for USF, which encompass a very high level framework vision of what success looks like,” Limayem said. “It’s time for us to move from AAU status to being a true model of a new generation university in an era of intelligence systems.” 

He explained that this can be measured in multiple ways. With artificial intelligence, education is rapidly changing. 

“Being a model means we have to completely reset and rethink how we do things,”  Limayem said. It is imperative to train “critical thinkers” who do not “outsource their thinking” to generative AI technology. 

“We are dealing with a generation who cannot write a simple text without going to ChatGPT or other systems,” he explained. “Imagine if we don’t do anything. What kind of doctors, engineers, accountants, artists and historians would we be training?”

St. Petersburg Downtown Partnership CEO Jason Mathis, left, in conversation with University of South Florida president Moez Limayem.

Limayem believes that interpersonal skills are just as important. Some young people do not even know how to shake someone’s hand properly. He explained that this is not “unique to USF.” 

Experimental learning is key. Limayem said that research has shown that students are more likely to receive jobs if they complete an internship or participate in another real world learning opportunity. The USF team’s vision is simple: students will not graduate regardless of their major if they do not gain “practical experience.” 

Limayem added that another central focus of USF moving forward is to teach young people how to “disagree respectfully.” 

“People now when they talk about emotionally charged topics, they listen to attack, to undermine and in many instances to kill,” he said. “I want our students at USF to be actually the best at civil discourse where they listen to understand and be better people.” 

Limayem emphasized that the St. Petersburg property will play an essential role in helping USF become a national and statewide model for other universities. 

“I see our campus in St. Pete as one of the major major assets that we have,” he said. “There are a lot of things that we can do here in St. Pete to make it the campus of choice for people not only from our region, but from around the country and the world that we cannot do in Tampa or any other campus.” 

Limayem added that the location and size of the site makes it especially attractive. One of the most unique logistical aspects of the property is that students can walk to internships. Limayem said that he wants to work with local business leaders to help grow the St. Petersburg campus. He argued that “we have to think innovatively, creatively and out of the box on distinctiveness.”

Programs could play a key role in shaping the campus’s identity, Limayem said. The College of Marine Science is an example. 

In May, USF’s Marine Science Laboratory was severely damaged by a fire. When asked about the future of the site, Limayem explained that the educational institution is currently in the planning process to “rebuild.” The goal is to create a state of the art facility. 

“We look at controversy, problems and challenges and we always make the best of them to make them great opportunities,” he said. “Seeing and feeling the support of the St. Petersburg community and the region to USF during that tragedy was really heartwarming.”